Walgreens Transition From Good To Great

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Introduction Taking an organization from good to great is not an easy feat. In fact, it is quite rare because many great companies were already great to begin with. There was not journey, they did not start off as good; they were simply great all along. The reason it is so difficult to transition from good to great is because many people are satisfied with good. Good is, well, good enough. There is no need to become great. Of course, there is always an exception to the rule. In his book “Good to Great” Jim Collins tells us what it takes for a company to make the leap and transition from good to great. For the purposes of this paper, Walgreens will be the focus. The paper will discuss how Walgreens turned from good to great in all …show more content…

In the case of Walgreens, that meant getting out of the restaurant business. This could not have been an easy decision for Cork as some of the restaurants were even named after him. Also, Walgreens invented the chocolate malt so it was not as if they were unsuccessful in the restaurant business, (Collins, J., 2001). What it came down to was that in order to be the best at what they did, Walgreens had to focus on just one business – the one they did best – and that was the convenience drugstore business. Cork’s decision was not popular among the other leaders within the organization but Cork was successful at getting the rest of the executives on board with his decision. Within five years Walgreens was completely out of the restaurant business and able to put all of their focus into their …show more content…

The technology Walgreens put into place helped to accelerate their success and put them well ahead of their competitors. The developed an “application of satellite communications and computer network technology, tailored to the unique needs of specific demographics and locations. A big investment on a satellite system that links stores together, like one giant web of a single corner pharmacy” (Collins, J., 2001). “It's important to let technology he a resource for you. We see it as another tool in our tool belt to help us he more efficient,” (The CEO and the Future of Technology, 2004). The technology was used as a tool to aid them in becoming the best and making their lives easier. They did not utilize technology for the sake of utilizing technology; they utilized the tools that were at their fingertips to make them

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